The Major League Baseball playoffs, known as ‘las grandes ligas’ by our Latino friends, are complex for those unfamiliar with baseball across the Atlantic. They are now reaching their climax.
In the American League, the ‘American League Championship Series’ (a sort of semi-final) sees the Boston Red Sox and the Houston Astros tied at two wins each. The next games promise to be thrilling. The Fenway Park side, who secured the American League wild card (barely making it through), crushed the Houston Astros, who had topped the American League West division, in a one-sided 13-2 match at Boston on Sunday. Last night, the Astros returned the favor with a 9-2 victory. The best-of-seven series winner will claim the American League title and a spot in the World Series against the National League champion. The Yankees, Rays, and White Sox have already been eliminated…
In the National League, Atlanta currently leads the reigning champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers, with a 2-1 series advantage. The situation is far from settled, and the Californians must react to keep their hopes alive. The Giants of ‘Frisco’ are out of the running, despite finishing the regular season as the top team across all major leagues with a .660 win ratio! The same goes for the ‘Cards,’ whose wild card hopes vanished against the Dodgers. The Brewers, who have never won a World Series, are also out, despite being second in the National League…
The race for the two World Series spots continued last night with Game 5 of the ALCS and Game 4 of the NLCS.
Your predictions?
Vincent Picard
